09/10/2015
Some points to consider before buying a laptop
Over the years, computer components have become very advanced and speedy. General purpose laptops (for home or office use) don't differ much and this is true for almost all brands. Before you go and buy one, keep the following points in your consideration that will help you in decision making:
1. A thoughtfully purchased laptop can fulfill your needs for 3 - 5 years or even afterwards too. These are not throw away machines so spend a little extra to buy a "good laptop" ... though "good laptop" is a very relative term that may mean different to different users and their needs.
2. This is an era of competition. All brands offer a range of laptops from entry level to high-end to professional level. There is not much difference in laptops in these ranges. Every brand may have an offering to satisfy your requirements. So, brand may not be a factor in decision making. If you like any specific brand, go ahead and find one that meets your needs.
3. Before visiting the market, write down your TOP THREE (T3) requirements in priority order on a paper. Otherwise, every other laptop will attract you causing distraction and confusion in decision making. While reviewing specs and selecting a laptop, keep your T3 requirements in mind.
4. A good system is one that has matched speeds of processor, RAM, and motherboard. These days, new laptops come with DDR3 RAM that is the latest technology giving a range of bus speeds. 1333 is a reasonably good speed that you should look for. If you choose this speed, make sure your processor and motherboard at least support this speed. Otherwise, you will loose some performance.
5. Solid State hard disks (SSD) have started coming with new laptops. These disks don't have platters, read/write head, and motors that typical hard disks have. SSDs use electronic circuits to read and write data, similar to USB flash disks. Since SSDs don't have mechanical parts, they offer increased performance as compared to typical hard disks. This additional performance comes with extra price. If you can afford this little extra cost, better asking for an SSD since this will be wide spread in a year or two. Since SSDs are electronic circuits, chances of mechanical failure or damage is nearly zero.
6. Computer LCDs/LEDs, bigger screens, music systems, and other monitors come with High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) or DisplayPort (DP) interfaces. Even cell phones and cars have HDMI ports. Though, DP port is little better than HDMI, laptops these days come with HDMI ports. Better buy a laptop with HDMI port.
7. USB 3.0 is the latest USB standard offering increased speed than USB 2. Your laptop must have at least one USB 3.0 port. Look inside the port and you should see a BLUE COLORED plastic separation. USB 2 has black colored separation.
8. If you are concerned using a licensed operating system (OS), find a laptop bundled with Windows 8.1 or Windows 10. Bundled OS would cost much less than if purchased separately.
9. Usually laptops come with 6-cell batteries. In case you want a longer backup, you can opt for a 9-cell battery ... that of course is heavier and costs extra.
10. If you are more concerned about security and privacy, you can choose a laptop that comes with a finger print reader.
11. Prefer choosing a back-lit keyboard. With this type of keyboard, you can easily type even if there is no light around. If you do a lot of typing, give due attention selecting the keyboard: space between keys, key type, force required to press a key, and location and size of mostly used keys like Escape, Delete, Enter, Shift, and Backspace etc.
12. Don't go for high-end processors since you will not experience noticeable performance gain as compared to the price you will pay for this high-end component. For Intel brand, 5th generation Core i5 processor should be very sufficient.
13. Video chats these days are very common, both at home and office. If your laptop has a built-in camera, it is a big plus. Otherwise, you would have to buy separate camera and carry it with you.
14. If you are interested in purchasing a high-end laptop for multimedia or graphics work, consider the following:
(a) Buy a processor with good L2 cache like 4-6MB. You will gain good performance.
(b) Usually, laptops come with 2 RAM slots. Instead of having one RAM of 8GB, opt two RAMs of 4GB. Though, the performance gain in this case would not be noticeable but theoretically you will gain nearly double performance as compared to using single RAM.
(c) Make sure your laptop has a dedicated graphics card, preferably with GDDR5. Graphics card with 1GB RAM is considered enough.
15. Touch screen laptops have also started coming in the market. They give similar experience as smart phones do. See you if you would like to adopt this use of ease.
16. ** WARRANTY**
Usually shop keepers charm their customers buy saying that the laptop has "international warranty". This is just a tactic and there is no such thing as international warranty. Insist on having local warranty that ensures there is some company (manufacturer or authorized distributor/third-party) to handle your laptop locally in case there is some problem with it. Ask the seller categorically WHO will handle warranty? Preferably it should be the manufacturer or the authorized distributor.
There is a term called "Channel Product". It means the seller has purchased the product officially from the manufacturer or the authorized distributor i.e one of them "owns" the product. Keep in mind that manufacturer or authorized distributor will entertain warranty claims ONLY for channel products.
There is a term called "Grey Channel". It means the
product is imported or smuggled by some company other than the manufacturer or the authorized distributor. Usually shop keepers give warranty on their own behalf or the company who imported/smuggled the product since manufacturer or authorized distributor WILL NOT entertain warranty claims of products of grey channel.
Ask for warranty terms and conditions. Shop keepers and importers may charge additional amount (3 - 10 thousand rupees) under the head "shipping and handling" since they would need to send the laptop outside country to get it fixed. Whereas, manufacturers and authorized distributors have all the necessary infrastructure and labs LOCALLY and requires less time to fix issues or give you a replacement in case the problem can't be fixed.
There is a term called "Replacement Warranty". It means the problematic laptop will be immediately replaced with an equal or better one and, in case of better equivalent, no additional amount will be charged. This usually happens when the model of the problematic laptop is out of stock or production. If the seller tells you that the manufacturer or authorized distributor will entertain the warranty, ensure he gives you the ORIGINAL warranty card that comes with products. In this case, note the model and serial number of the product, get the name and phone number of manufacturer or authorized distributor from the seller, call that company, tell them the product model and serial number and ask if they will entertain the warranty of that product or not?
Warranty is a complex and tactful matter. Usually sellers use it very smartly to deceive customers since they don't have knowledge of it. They make false promises and statements and customers suffer when the product faces a problem. In case the seller gives warranty on his own behalf, make sure "shop warranty" or "seller warranty" is written on the bill/receipt with warranty term i.e. number of years or months. Also decide with the seller if the seller would charge any amount for shipping and handling. If he says no amount will be charged, ask him to write "No shipping and handling amount" on the bill/receipt. This will keep your side safe and will leave no space for the seller to flee when there is a warranty claim. Words of mouth have no value. Better EXPLICITLY get it written.
When you get the bill/receipt, make sure it is on a proper letter head with the name of shop/company, address, and phone numbers. Also get it stamped for more safety. Many sellers give a bill and only "Case Memo" is written on the top, nothing else, and they are also reluctant to stamp it. This may a cause problem when you will come to them for a warranty claim since they may refuse to entertain the warranty by saying this product was not purchased from them ... since there is no evidence in the form of a proper letter head or stamped bill.
17. Manufacturers like Dell, HP, IBM, Lenovo, Sony, Gigabyte have developed their websites where buyers can pick and choose laptops with specs of their own choice. Spend some time on these portals to find a laptop fulfilling your needs and see detailed specs of components.
18. Before actually buying a laptop, visit 3-5 sellers to select your desired laptop. Note product specs, prices, and warranty terms. This effort will give you a good idea and will highlight the differences among seller-to-seller.
Good luck with shopping!
